Update 6: Art Update! You're either eagerly awaiting to see what your reward looks like OR you are holding out until your eyes are destroyed by Graham, Vincent and Campbell. The TIME IS NOW.

Update 1: Hoooooly crap, we hit our goal in exactly two hours! You guys are incredible. In celebration, our first Progresscast is up! Head over to the Updates section to listen if you pledged $10 or more.

Update 2: We continue to be blown away. The second Progresscast is up in the Updates section!

Update 3: We've got a special Dota 2 Progresscast up in the Updates section for backers! Listen and learn (how bad we are at Dota 2).

Update 4: We've posted a Progresscast discussion with Vincent Perea, one of our artist collaborators. We talk about his process as well as Zelda and chicken nuggets!

A
few years ago, some guys with careers in the video game industry
started producing a weekly podcast out of a San Francisco apartment. We had few goals, except that the show be independent, remain unconstrained by a segment-driven format, and be recorded only with all parties present in the room--not
over Skype. It really worked for people, and it became a big part of our lives.

Over
two years, we developed an audience who appreciated our
dubious blend of interpersonal chemistry, insight into development and
the industry, sometimes-pretentious musings about games, and baffling phonological explorations of Jeff
Goldblum’s name. Just check out our archive! (We've heard it's best to start from episode 1.)

People
tell us they miss the show. We miss creating it just as much. So, three
of us have decided it's time to make this thing happen again. The
current core lineup is Chris Remo, Sean Vanaman, and Jake Rodkin, with planned guest appearances by Steve Gaynor. You
might unfortunately know us as Boost, Famous, Video Games, and Hot Scoops. We'd like
your help. Without you, the puzzle is incomplete.

We've never charged for content. Thumbs has always been a
purely volunteer activity. That became difficult once we found ourselves the
custodians of a moderately successful podcast. The regular time
commitment combined with the costs of equipment and bandwidth meant an activity we greatly enjoyed also became a considerable resource
drain. Even now, with the podcast defunct, we
spend money every month to keep the full archive available through a
good host--and that's a lot more money when the podcast is active.

We
never had the benefit of being attached to a large media
outlet.
We’ve always relied on the ever-gratifying word-of-mouth provided by our
community to get our name out there. Now our goal is to make Idle
Thumbs pay for itself so that once it starts up again, we can continue
to produce it weekly for years to come. We still have no intention of charging for the cast.

That's only part of why we're doing this Kickstarter, though.

We want Idle Thumbs to grow. When we come back, we're planning on launching with not just the main video game podcast, but also a book club podcast in which we choose a book to read for a month then discuss it on the air, including with reader questions.

And we want to be able to fund a home base--an office, even a tiny closet-sized one, from which we can record podcasts and plan the site's future. We want to give Thumbs the space to become something more than just a hobby project.

Thumbs has gone dormant
several times over the years, only to return time and time again in
various forms. This time, we want it to stay active
indefinitely, to cast away its once-inevitable biennial slumber--not
merely to subsist but to [some kind of metaphor here about a grenade
rolling down a hill].

Rewards are rad. Idle Thumbs merchandise has never been easily
available, and Kickstarter offers a
great system to do something we already like doing
(designing and producing digital and physical goods) in a way that will
help ensure the future of something we love (our goofy video game
podcast). Hopefully, this is just the start.

Here's what we've got lined up:

THE "WISH YOU WERE HERE" ($10)

PROGRESSCAST: Exclusive access to short pre-launch podcasts from
Chris, Jake, Sean, and possible guests as they feverishly attempt to
get Idle Thumbs back up and running.

YOU'VE GOT MAIL: We will make and sign a postcard, and mail it to you in the actual real physical mail.

FOUNDER'S WALL: Your name on a permanent Kickstarter backer page on the Idle Thumbs website.

INTERNATIONAL BACKERS: Add $3 for higher shipping costs.

THE "VIDEO GAME" ($30)

THIRTY FLIGHTS OF LOVING: Download the video game short story Thirty Flights of Loving, Blendo Games' sequel to Gravity Bone,
developed for the Idle Thumbs Kickstarter and featuring an original
soundtrack by Chris Remo. It will blow you away (PC digital download). More details on the Updates page. Check out the original Gravity Bone (and other incredible Blendo titles like Atom Zombie Smasher) at Blendo's website.

MUSIC OF THE THUMB (digital): Digital access to newly-recorded versions of several Idle Thumbs songs by Chris Remo ("The Idle Thumbs Podcast Theme," "The Fanboy's Lament," "Space Asshole," "The Wizard") and a remix by Jared Emerson-Johnson, composer for Sam & Max seasons 1-3 and much more. (See the "WORLD IS YOURS" tier for physical version of this album.)

ALSO: Progresscast access, digital backgrounds, your name on the Founder's Wall, and a signed postcard.

INTERNATIONAL BACKERS: Add $3 for higher shipping costs.

THE "STYLIN'" ($50)

WEAR THE THUMB: They thought you were ashamed of your love for Idle Thumbs. Prove them wrong with a high-quality American Apparel t-shirt emblazoned with our new logo designed by Stevan Zivadinovic. (You will be asked to indicate your size once funding has been completed.)

ALSO: Blendo's Thirty Flights of Loving game, "Music of the Thumb"
digital album, Progresscast access, digital backgrounds, your name on
the Founder's Wall, and a signed postcard.

INTERNATIONAL BACKERS: Add $10 for higher shipping costs.

THE "PEREA" ($100)

VINCENT PEREA DRAWS SPACE: A distant nebula. A craggy Marsianscape. Nothing is as picturesque as space in the springtime. Receive a high quality print, suitable for framing from Vincent Perea, the artist behind The Misadventures of P.B. Winterbottom, Where's My Water?, and more.

HOUSE OF LORDS: Your name will forever grace the distinguished "House of Lords" tier of the Idle Thumbs Founder's Wall.

THE "WORLD IS YOURS" ($200)

WIZARD'S EXCLUSIVE GOLD FOIL TUNIC: T-shirt with gold foil Idle Thumbs logo inspired by the logo from classic video game film The Wizard. This shirt variant only ever available through this Kickstarter!

MUSIC OF THE THUMB (vinyl): Vinyl EP featuring new recordings of four Idle
Thumbs tracks ("The Idle Thumbs Podcast Theme," "The Fanboy's Lament," "Space
Asshole," "The Wizard") performed by Chris Remo, a B-side featuring a remix by Jared Emerson-Johnson (The Walking Dead game, Sam & Max Seasons
1-3), and cover art by talented illustrator Campbell Whyte (8-Bit Dreams). You will also receive a digital version of the album.

RUINATIONCAST: You will have the
right to demand a topic we must discuss on the final Progresscast. Use this power wisely.

THAT'S WHY YOU ALWAYS LEAVE A NOTE: We will hand-write a unique note, poem, or insult on your signed postcard.

JOURNAL OF GAMES: Receive one of the few remaining hard copies of the
Idle Thumbs Journal of Games, a one-off broadsheet newspaper distributed
solely during Game Developers Conference 2009 in San Francisco. Content
and design by Jake Rodkin, Chris Remo, Steve Gaynor, Marek Bronstring,
Duncan Fyfe, David Eggers, and Snap E. Gamer.

HOUSE OF LORDS: Your name will forever grace the "House of Lords" tier of the Idle Thumbs Founder's Wall.

MAN "THAT'S A LOT OF STUFF" (is it enough?)

SERIOUSLY: This is outrageous. Look at all these wondrous Idle Thumbs treasures. You want them. Wait, you're saying you want even more rewards? Unbelievable rewards that will leave you with stories to surprise and delight your children and your children's children, honoring your family name for generations to come? Read on, friend...

THE "HOORAY FOR YOU" PACKAGE ($1000)

BE OUR FRIEND: Come have dinner with us and your plus-one, either in San Francisco when you're in town, or during a game industry event we attend, such as PAX or GDC.

IMMORTALIZED IN SONG: Chris will write and record a song about you or a topic of your choice,
and we'll play it in a 2012 episode of Idle Thumbs of your choosing.
(Song topic excludes commercial advertisement.)

WIZARD'S CIRCLE: Your name will be proudly etched for all eternity in the "Wizard's Circle" tier of the Idle Thumbs Founder's Wall, our highest honor.

AND DON'T FORGET: Art prints from Graham Annable and Vincent Perea, Blendo's Thirty Flights of Loving game, "Music of the Thumb" vinyl EP and digital album,
input on the Ruinationcast, Idle Thumbs logo t-shirt, exclusive gold foil t-shirt based on The Wizard, one of the last copies of the Idle Thumbs Journal of Games, Progresscast
access, sticker pack, digital backgrounds, and a signed postcard with a custom note.

INTERNATIONAL BACKERS: At this point we are no longer concerned about that $10.

THE "HIP, HIP, HOORAY FOR YOU" PACKAGE ($5000)

BE OUR FRIEND: Come have dinner with us and your plus-one, either in San Francisco
when you're in town, or during a game industry event we attend, such as
PAX or GDC. Except in this version, the dinner is at a super nice restaurant. Swank.

IMMORTALIZED IN SONG: Chris will write and record a song about you or a topic of your choice,
and we'll play it in a 2012 episode of Idle Thumbs of your choosing.
(Song topic excludes commercial advertisement.)

WIZARD'S CIRCLE: Your name will be proudly etched for all
eternity in the "Wizard's Circle" tier of the Idle Thumbs Founder's
Wall, our highest honor.

AND DON'T FORGET: Art prints from Graham Annable and Vincent Perea, Blendo's Thirty Flights of Loving
game, "Music of the Thumb" vinyl EP and digital album,
input on the Ruinationcast, Idle Thumbs logo t-shirt, exclusive gold
foil t-shirt based on The Wizard, one of the last copies of the Idle
Thumbs Journal of Games, Progresscast
access, sticker pack, digital backgrounds, and a signed postcard with a
custom note.

INTERNATIONAL BACKERS: At this point we are no longer concerned about that $10.

THE "SPONSORSHIP" ($1000)

PATRON OF THE SHOW: You will be the sponsor of two (2) (ii) 2012 episodes of Idle
Thumbs of your choosing. Sponsorship consists of a short ad read at the
beginning of the episode, and a brief jingle recorded by Chris and
played at the break. (Jingles are exclusive to this Kickstarter
campaign.)

WIZARD'S CIRCLE: Your name will be proudly etched for all
eternity in the "Wizard's Circle" tier of the Idle Thumbs Founder's
Wall, our highest honor.

AND DON'T FORGET: Art prints from Graham Annable and Vincent Perea, Blendo's Thirty Flights of Loving
game, "Music of the Thumb" vinyl EP and digital album,
input on the Ruinationcast, Idle Thumbs logo t-shirt, exclusive gold
foil t-shirt based on The Wizard, one of the last copies of the Idle
Thumbs Journal of Games, Progresscast
access, sticker pack, digital backgrounds, and a signed postcard with a custom note.

INTERNATIONAL BACKERS: At this point we are no longer concerned about that $10.

THE "DOUBLE SPONSORSHIP" ($2000)

PATRON OF THE SHOW: You will be the sponsor of five (5) (v) 2012 episodes of Idle
Thumbs of your choosing. Sponsorship consists of a short ad read at the
beginning of the episode, and a brief jingle recorded by Chris and
played at the break. (Jingles are exclusive to this Kickstarter
campaign.)

WIZARD'S CIRCLE: Your name will be proudly etched for all
eternity in the "Wizard's Circle" tier of the Idle Thumbs Founder's
Wall, our highest honor.

AND DON'T FORGET: Art prints from Graham Annable and Vincent Perea, Blendo's Thirty Flights of Loving
game, "Music of the Thumb" vinyl EP and digital album,
input on the Ruinationcast, Idle Thumbs logo t-shirt, exclusive gold
foil t-shirt based on The Wizard, one of the last copies of the Idle
Thumbs Journal of Games, Progresscast
access, sticker pack, digital backgrounds, and a signed postcard with a custom note.

INTERNATIONAL BACKERS: At this point we are no longer concerned about that $10.

(Note: All pictured rewards are works in progress.)

Brendon Chung is the one-man development team behind Blendo Games, known for its incredibly diverse slate of video games including Atom Zombie Smasher, Flotilla, and Gravity Bone.

Graham Annable is a Portland-based illustrator and animator known for his Grickle comics and videos, as well as the Puzzle Agent video games. He works as a storyboard artist at Laika, the animation studio behind the film Coraline.

Vincent Perea is a Los Angeles-based artist whose video game titles include The Odd Gentlemen's The Misadventures of P.B. Winterbottom and Disney's hit iOS game Where's My Water?

Alex Griendling is a San Francisco-based designer and illustrator who has created movie posters, calendars, and any number of other pieces of visual media. He currently works at Google.

Campbell Whyte is a Perth, Australia-based artist. His work spans many media and includes the ever-growing 8-Bit Dreams series based on classic video games.

Support

Select this reward

Pledge US$ 10 or more
About US$ 10

Exclusive access to pre-launch podcast updates from Chris, Jake, Sean, and possible guests as they feverishly attempt to fund Idle Thumbs. — A real physical postcard signed and mailed by the Thumbs. — Idle Thumbs wallpaper pack for your computer and mobile devices, created by designer Alex Griendling. — Your name on a permanent Kickstarter Founder's Wall on the Idle Thumbs website. — Add $3 for orders from outside the U.S.

Kickstarter is not a store.

Pledge US$ 30 or more
About US$ 30

PC digital download of Thirty Flights of Loving, Blendo Games' sequel to Gravity Bone, developed for this Kickstarter and featuring a soundtrack by Chris Remo. It will blow you away. — Digital album featuring new recordings of four Idle Thumbs tracks (The Idle Thumbs Podcast Theme, The Fanboy's Lament, Space Asshole, and The Wizard) performed by Chris Remo, with remixes by Jared Emerson-Johnson (Sam & Max seasons 1-3). — Plus all previous rewards! — Add $3 for orders from outside the U.S.

Kickstarter is not a store.

Pledge US$ 100 or more
About US$ 100

ART OPTION 1: High-quality print from Vincent Perea, the artist behind The Misadventures of P.B. Winterbottom, Wheres My Water?, and more. — Your name emblazoned for all time on the "House of Lords" tier of the Founder's Wall — Idle Thumbs sticker pack — Plus all previous rewards, including the game! — Add $10 for orders from outside the U.S.

Kickstarter is not a store.

Pledge US$ 100 or more
About US$ 100

ART OPTION 2: High quality set of four small frameable prints of a shitty wizard from Graham Annable, the artist behind Grickle, Puzzle Agent, and more. — Your name emblazoned for all time on the "House of Lords" tier of the Founder's Wall — Idle Thumbs sticker pack — Idle Thumbs sticker pack — Plus all previous rewards, including the game! — Add $10 for orders from outside the U.S.

Kickstarter is not a store.

Pledge US$ 200 or more
About US$ 200

This is everything we got. BOTH artists' prints as well as: T-shirt with gold foil Idle Thumbs logo inspired by the logo from classic video game film The Wizard. This shirt variant only ever available through this Kickstarter! — Vinyl EP featuring new recordings of four Idle Thumbs tracks performed by Chris Remo, a B-side featuring remixes by Jared Emerson-Johnson, and cover art by illustrator Campbell Whyte (8-Bit Dreams). — Ruinationcast input: On our last pre-launch podcast, you will have the right to demand a topic we must discuss on the air. — Receive one of few remaining copies of the Idle Thumbs Journal of Games, a one-off newspaper distributed solely during Game Developers Conference 2009. — We will hand-write a unique note, poem, or insult on your signed postcard. — Your name emblazoned for all time on the "House of Lords" tier of the Founder's Wall — Idle Thumbs sticker pack — Plus all previous rewards, including the game and first t-shirt! — Add $10 for orders from outside the U.S.

Kickstarter is not a store.

Pledge US$ 1,000 or more
About US$ 1,000

BUDDY PACKAGE: Come have dinner with us and your plus-one, either in San Francisco when you're in town, or during a game industry event we're attending, such as PAX or GDC. — Chris will write and record a song about you or a topic of your choice, and we'll play it in a 2012 episode of Idle Thumbs of your choosing. (Song topic excludes commercial advertisement.) — Your name resplendent for eternity on the most distinguished "Wizard's Circle" tier of the Founder's Wall — Plus all previous rewards, including the game! — You don't need to add international shipping because, at this point, holy crap.

Kickstarter is not a store.

Pledge US$ 1,000 or more
About US$ 1,000

SPONSOR PACKAGE: You will be the sponsor of two (2) (ii) 2012 episodes of Idle Thumbs of your choosing. Sponsorship consists of a short ad read at the beginning of the episode, and a brief jingle recorded by Chris and played at the break. (Jingles are exclusive to this Kickstarter campaign.) — Your name resplendent for eternity on the most distinguished "Wizard's Circle" tier of the Founder's Wall — Plus all previous rewards, including the game! — You don't need to add international shipping because, at this point, holy crap.